Thranduil Beloved Son
by hippydeath
Summary: The second of my Thranduil stories. Legolas has returned from the war, and has announced that he is leaving again for Ithilien. How would any father react to that?


Standard disclaimer: - I own squat. It's nearly Christmas too, so be nice.  
  
Authors note: - this piece comes after "In Place of Another" I think that I'm going to write an entire Thranduil series. Too many people are mean to him; he needs people to make him nice. More notes at the bottom I'm afraid. Constructive criticism always appreciated.  
  
Beloved Son  
  
  
  
It would appear that my son is leaving us to once more find adventure of Eryn Lasgalen. That our now scorched home holds no interest for him. He proposes to take any of our people who wish to go, and re-build the decimated oasis of Ithilien, and I, as a respectful father have given him leave to do so, though it breaks my heart to lose him once more, and to the thought that I may never see him again.  
  
His reasons are sound, even I can see that. The land must heal, and for that it needs the tending of the Elves. I do believe that were I not king I would follow him, or had our people not fought so hard and lost so many; I would have moved our people there with him. But this is our land, and once more it is ours alone. We struggled hard to free it from the shadow, watched it burn and lost many of our families, but it is no longer Mirkwood, but Eryn Lasgalen, Wood of the Greenleaves, and we shall be proud of it once more.  
  
With all my heart I shall miss him, and whether we never see each other again, whether we are reunited in the West, or whether some ill fate shall befall us and we meet again in The Halls of Mandos, he shall always hold a place in my heart, for his actions in the Fellowship made me proud.  
  
He survived the War of the Ring. He aided the Halflings, and in the midst of battle forged a friendship with that Dwarf that will undoubtedly last until the end of their days.  
  
The joy I felt at seeing him alive was immeasurable. The months that he was gone from my realm were spent pacing restlessly, only battle rousing me from that trance like state.  
  
He has changed, something that I knew would happen; yet the change has been far greater and far more profound that I had imagined. He is harder now, more battle worn, and shows much more joy in life and his surroundings. I think that it is for this reason that I shall let him go. To stay here would harm him, he would lose the vitality that he has gained, and he needs the freedom to develop the new person that this war has caused him to become. He is no longer so impudent, or so sarcastic to those around him. He recognises authority, and will, in time become a good and honest leader. I feel that he has learnt the same lessons through choice that I was forced to learn from the Last Alliance.  
  
No truer a son could a father ask for. He stayed true to his name and honour, yet acted in a way that I never could have done. My temper would have influenced my actions too greatly, and I would have ended that Dwarfs life from what Legolas has told me. And, should the worst have happened, I do fear that I could have fallen to temptation of the Ring. I do honestly believe that this war has bought much good with its end. Mirkwood is no longer cloaked in darkness, my son has grown to a true adult who I am proud of, and most of all, and he has found a calling.  
  
My kinsman Celeborn, who aided us in our fight, tells me that I am becoming too sentimental in my old age! Maybe I am, but if that is true, then he is becoming more warlike, but I think that is another tale altogether.  
  
With my son leaving, and my own kind dwindling in this world, I feel I have but one task left. All remnants of the darkness left in this forest will be eradicated, and then I too will succumb to the call of the sea and leave with those who wish it for the West. All I hope for is that in the years to come, once more I shall see my beloved son.  
  
  
  
Authors notes 2: - there is a reference in Appendix B to Mirkwood suffering fire damage, I figure any fire damage in a forest has got to be bad. Also, somewhere, in the back of my twisted mind I recall Celeborn and Thranduil being referred to as kinsmen, I could be wrong though. Finally, it doesn't say whether Thranduil went West or not; I'm taking it that he did. 


End file.
